The present invention relates to a disk array apparatus and its firmware update method for updating firmware of controllers and the like.
Conventionally, the update processing of firmware of controllers in a disk array apparatus is performed upon correcting bugs or reinforcing functions, and the update frequency is high. Nevertheless, with the update processing of firmware of controllers in a conventional disk array apparatus, if the writing of the firmware is unsuccessful due to the occurrence of a failure during the firmware update or other reasons, there is a problem in that the infrastructure of the controller needs to be replaced.
As a device for resolving the foregoing problem, for example, there is a device of a system which redundantly comprises mediums to which firmware is written, periodically determines the normality of the firmware stored in the respective mediums, and, if a failure occurs in the running firmware, switches its operation to the firmware stored in the other medium and which is free from failure. As a device of this type of system, for example, an information processing apparatus of Patent Publication JP-A-2004-199120 is disclosed.
Specifically, the information processing apparatus of Patent Publication JP-A-2004-199120 comprises operational firmware stored in a rewritable memory, a CPU that runs on such operational firmware, a nonvolatile memory which stores corrective firmware as firmware that is one generation older than the operational firmware or which has operational experience, n-number of modules to which a monitoring device is connected via a system bus, and a system monitoring device.
With the information processing apparatus of Patent Publication JP-A-2004-199120, when the monitoring device detects a failure in the operational firmware that is currently running, the monitoring device notifies the system monitoring device that a failure has been detected. Subsequently, the system monitoring device requests the switching of firmware to the monitoring device of all n-number of modules. In addition, with the information processing apparatus of Patent Publication JP-A-2004-199120, the monitoring device of all n-number of modules switches the operational firmware to the corrective firmware, and the system monitoring device thereafter reboots all n-number of modules normally.
Nevertheless, with the information processing apparatus of Patent Publication JP-A-2004-199120, since both operational firmware and corrective firmware must be provided, two mediums are required for storing the firmware, and there are problems in that the cost of parts will increase, and extra mounting space is required on the hardware mounting surface.